Oscars 2017 Best Visual Effects nominee recap: A look at a year of Hollywood magic

From recreating a real-world disaster to crafting a fantasy masterpiece in stop-motion animation, last year’s crop of movies continued the raise the bar for visual effects — particularly those films nominated for Academy Awards this year in the “Best Visual Effects” category.

Each year, we’ve put a spotlight on the five films nominated for their visual effects in our “Oscar Effects” series, and this year was no different. With the Academy Awards ceremony kicking off this weekend, here’s a brief recap of this year’s edition of our annual, five-part celebration of the year’s best visual effects in cinema.

In the first installment of our Oscar Effects series, we looked at the combination of a massive set and explosive effects — both digital and practical — that were used to recreate the 2010 explosion of an offshore drilling rig in Deepwater Horizon, one of the worst ecological disasters of the modern era. Along with building a nearly life-size replica of the oil rig, the visual-effects team also pushed the boundaries of simulation software for fire and explosions in order to make the film’s version of the deadly disaster as realistic as possible.

Next, we spoke to two-Oscar nominee Stephane Ceretti, the visual effects supervisor on Marvel’s Doctor Strange, about the reality-bending sequences in that film that defied everything we know about physics and sent the movie’s characters on a “magical mystery tour” through a kaleidoscope of surreal dimensions. Along with revealing some of the artistic inspirations for the movie’s most memorable visual-effects sequences, Ceretti also shared some of the less-obvious reference material that informed the visual-effects team’s perspective on the way magic is represented in Marvel’s cinematic universe.

Creating an entire jungle full of animals that can talk, sing, and interact with each other like human actors is no small task, but that’s exactly what Disney did with the live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book. We spoke to the film’s producer, Brigham Taylor, and its two-time Academy Award winning visual-effects supervisor, Robert Legato, about the groundbreaking level of digital effects that were not only used but created to meet the ambitious goal of making film’s creature cast as indistinguishable from their real-world counterparts as possible.

While most films nominated for visual-effects Oscars rely on digital animation to make complicated set pieces or sequences seem like practical, physical elements, Kubo and the Two Strings used revolutionary technology to make stop-motion animation seem, well … perfectly seamless. We took a tour of Laika Entertainment’s animation studio to get a behind-the-scenes look at the process of making Kubo, one of the most breathtaking movies of the year and the first animated feature in more than 20 years to be nominated for an Academy Award in the visual-effects category.

Finally, we took a deep dive into the latest installment of the Star Wars franchise, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, to look at the way the film’s talented visual-effects team brought a pair of fan-favorite characters from the series’ past back to life again on the screen. We also looked into the unique approach taken by director Gareth Edwards in capturing the chaotic beauty of the space battles that are such a hallmark of the sci-fi saga.

If you've got your hands on some sweet Dolby Atmos gear, the next step is to find films that take advantage of it. These are our picks in every genre for the best Dolby Atmos movies currently available on Blu-ray and streaming services.

Looking for your first fitness tracker, or an upgrade to the one you're already wearing? There are plenty of the wrist-worn gadgets available. Here are our picks for the best fitness trackers available right now.

Need something to watch this weekend? Check out our list of the best new shows and movies to stream right now. On the list this week: Alfonso Cuaron's new film Roma, Jim Henson's classic fantasy The Dark Crystal, and more.

DC Comics' aquatic superhero Aquaman finally gets his solo feature with Jason Momoa in the title role, and director James Wan's adventure manages to avoid feeling waterlogged while offering up some amazing visuals and intense action.

Last-minute shoppers, and anyone seeking good deals on Amazon Fire products, are in luck. There's still time to order Fire Tablets, Fire TVs, and Fire media players, Fire CVRs, and Alexa-voice-compatible Fire remotes for Christmas delivery.

Amazon Prime Video adds new titles each month that are available for free to all Prime members. Check out our list to find all the content hitting Amazon Prime Video in December 2018 and January 2019, from new original series to classic…

There are more options for media streamers than ever, so it’s more difficult to pick the best option. But that’s why we're here. Our curated list of the best streaming devices will get you online in no time.

Save yourself from hours wasted scrolling through Netflix's massive library by checking out our picks for the streamer's best movies available right now, whether you're into explosive action, witty humor, or anything else.

Looking for a new show to binge? Lucky for you, we've curated a list of the best shows on Netflix, whether you're a fan of outlandish anime, dramatic period pieces, or shows that leave you questioning what lies beyond.

It's often overwhelming to navigate Hulu's robust library of TV shows. To help, we put together a list of the best shows on Hulu, whether you're into frenetic cartoons, intelligent dramas, or anything in between.